Journal article 451 views 73 downloads
Mixed effects of protected areas on avian food webs
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Konstans Wells ,
Miguel Lurgi Rivera
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Volume: 292, Issue: 2048, Start page: 20250614
Swansea University Authors:
Lucie Thompson, Konstans Wells , Miguel Lurgi Rivera
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© 2025 The Author(s). Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).
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DOI (Published version): 10.1098/rspb.2025.0614
Abstract
Protecting habitat and the species they shelter by setting up protected areas (PAs) has become a conservation priority to mitigate the current extinction crisis. This strategy has improved different aspects of biodiversity including species richness and abundance across ecosystems. However, to truly...
| Published in: | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |
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| ISSN: | 1471-2954 |
| Published: |
The Royal Society
2025
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| Online Access: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa69297 |
| Abstract: |
Protecting habitat and the species they shelter by setting up protected areas (PAs) has become a conservation priority to mitigate the current extinction crisis. This strategy has improved different aspects of biodiversity including species richness and abundance across ecosystems. However, to truly understand the effectiveness of mitigation measures against global environmental change, we must account for one of the fundamental dimensions of biodiversity: species interactions. Using 376 556 curated citizen science records of 509 bird species distributed across 45 networks of European PAs (collections of connected PAs), we show that the effects of PAs on the structure of avian food webs are mixed across Europe. Overall effects of protection include an increase in species richness and larger body masses of both top and intermediate species. For other food web features, the sign and magnitude of the effects are mixed. Our results further suggest that these effects are strongly influenced by geographical and environmental features of the PA networks such as remoteness, habitat diversity, human pressure and agriculture. Lastly, PAs with specific protection goals such as those administered by European Bird Directives for conservation sustain more complex food webs. Our study provides evidence for the need of including clear management goals and considering environmental context in the designation of PAs to increase their effectiveness at preserving biodiversity beyond species richness. |
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| Keywords: |
ecological networks, trophic interactions, habitat degradation, biodiversity conservation, protected areas, food webs, biogeography |
| College: |
Faculty of Science and Engineering |
| Funders: |
L.T. was funded by Swansea University ECR BIOL postgraduate research scholarship. N.G. received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement BIOFOODWEB (no. 101025471). |
| Issue: |
2048 |
| Start Page: |
20250614 |